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volcano erupting cake

(1 rating)
Recipe by
Vicki Lyn
Darby, MT

I went to a birthday party, and the child's mother made this cake! All of the children, and adults, LOVED it! It was like Mount St Helens erupting orange lava and smoke! I asked for the recipe, and was given 3 different ways to make it, which I will provide here. The Volcano Cake I had was homeade chocolate cakes, with homeade frostings. But you can use a store bought mix, and it will still be amazing! This cake is fun for the entire family to make, and children love it! Have fun! I only wish I had a photo & video to show you! I can't add prep or cooking times. They vary with each method.

(1 rating)
yield serving(s)
method Bake

Ingredients For volcano erupting cake

  • 6
    8" baked round cakes (use your favorite kind, either store bought mix or homeade)
  • 2
    tubs chocolate frosting (or homeade chocolate frosting equivelant to 2 tubs of frosting)
  • 1
    partial tub white frosting (or you can make your own white frosting)
  • 1
    1 1/2" cookie cutter, or a small juice glass that's 1 1/2" around
  • 1
    egg
  • 3
    drops of red food coloring
  • 3
    drops of green food coloring
  • 1 1/2 tsp
    sugar
  • 1/4 lb
    dry ice (be careful, dry ice is 100 degrees, and should only be handled by adults, use tongs and or gloves when handling)
  • aluminum foil
  • 1 to 2 oz
    hot tap water

How To Make volcano erupting cake

  • 1
    Buy the dry ice the day you'll use it. Store it in the freezer, and use precautions when handling.
  • 2
    Make six 8" round cakes. Use your favorite recipe or your favorite store bought mix. Bake and cool. Now take the cookie cutter, or small juice glass, and cut a hole in the center of two of the cakes. These two cakes will be used for the top layers of the cake. They will form a well in the center of the cake.
  • 3
    Now to construct the cake. Place the first cake on a large platter, or cake plate, and frost the top of it. Then add each layer to the other, with frosting in between each layer. Placing the two cakes, with the holes in the center, at the top of the cake. As you form the layers, trim off each layer of cake (not the first layer) as you build up the cake, to form a mountain.
  • 4
    Now take a small piece of aluminum foil and line the well in the center of the cake. (You can use the small juice glass and wrap the foil around it, to use as a mold.) Add the green food coloring to the white frosting, and set aside.
  • 5
    Now it's time to frost the cake! Use chocolate frosting to frost the cake. Use the frosting to smooth out the layers, as they will be step-like ledges from the trimming of the cakes. After frosting the cake with the chocolate frosting, add the green frosting to make little vegetation like bushes around the mountain of cake. (You can also use little green candies if you want, to make it resemble vegetation, instead of the green frosting, or you can use both.)
  • 6
    When it's time to serve your Volcano Cake, thats when you make the "lava." Separate the egg, and toss the yolk. Now put the egg white into a small mixing bowl, with 1 1/2 tsp of sugar and 3 drops of red food coloring. Beat until the egg white mixture starts to thicken. You don't want stiff peaks to form, just a thick and foamy texture.
  • 7
    Now put 2-3 pieces of the dry ice into the foil lined well of your cake. Next, pour in the red egg mixture. (Nothing happens yet). Take your cake to where you'll be serving it (where your family, guests or party is). Then fill a little glass with 1-2 ounces of hot tap water. When you're ready to have your Volcano Cake erupt, pour 1-2 ounces of the hot water, into the dry ice/egg mixture well, and it will E-R-U-P-T!!! With orange lava flowing and smoke coming out!!! This eruption lasts for several minutes!
  • 8
    Take pictures and/or a video of your Volcano Cake Erupting! And, of coarse, take pictures and a video of your guests, because they'll be in awe of what you've created!
  • 9
    SECOND METHOD FOR VOLCANO ERUPTION: If you can't find dry ice, or don't want to use it, then you can still have your Volcano Cake erupt. There won't be any smoke, but it will still be fun with all the flowing lava! You'll need a little juice glass or a shot glass, about 3" tall and 1 1/2" around, that will fit snugly in the well of your Volcano Cake. You'll need 1 small box of orange jello, a small bottle of lemon juice and 1 Tablespoon of bicarbonate of soda.
  • 10
    Make the jello according to the package directions. Let it cool for about 15 minutes or so. You want it to be warm, not hot. Fill the shot/juice glass 1/2 full of the warm Jello. Pour in some lemon juice, to about 1/2 inch from the top. Now place the glass into the well of the cake, and make sure the glass is flush with the top of the cake. Now, you're ready for your Volcano Cake to erupt! Gather family, or party guests, around the table where your cake is. When you're ready, put 1 Tablespoon of the Bicarbonate of Soda (I'm told you can purchase this at a Pharmacy) into the glass, and stir it for only about 1-2 seconds. Now, your "lava" will begin to flow!
  • 11
    THIRD METHOD FOR VOLCANO CAKE: You can use 2 Angel Food Cakes, for the cakes if you would rather. Just slice off 3" from the top of one of the angel food cakes, and put it on top of the other angel food cake, to make the Volcano Cake. Then trim the edge of the top layer so you can have the round mountain effect. Frost the cake, by using the directions in the first Volcano Cake method. Then place wadded up paper, in the center of the bottom angel food cake hole, to hold a juice glass. One that will hold either the dry ice method for eruption, or the jello method for eruption. Both explained earlier in the different recipes for lava flow.
  • 12
    Either way you make your Volcano Cake, enjoy the moment! It's fabulous and amazing!

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